Sachin Tendulkar Birthday:There is a version of Tendulkar that Mumbai remembers, far away from the centuries, records, and reverence that the world has archived spanning across three decades. For a Mumbaikar, he is, perhaps, still a boy who didn’t just rise above the system, but quietly reshaped it without ever breaking it. For Jatin Paranjpe, former India cricketer and a Mumbai teammate, his first memory is disarmingly ordinary. The story dates back to 1985, and it all started with a handshake at an Under-15 trial. What happened next was even more ironic, as Paranjpe recalls in an exclusive chat with Sports Now on the eve of Sachin Tendulkar's 53rd birthday. Two boys not selected, sharing a bus ride back home. Their cricketing journey took different turns: One of them would go on to become a global icon; the other would carry that first introduction as a reminder that greatness often begins without spectacle.
"My first memory was meeting him at a Mumbai U-15 selection trial. And he is exactly one year younger to me. My birthday is 17th April 1972. His is 24th April 1973. So, we are just one year apart. And ironically, neither of us was selected that year. But I remember him coming up to me, shaking my hand and saying, 'Hi, I am Sachin. And what is your name?' I said, 'I am Jatin.' So, that's how our friendship started," Paranjpe recounted.
"And after that first selection trial, we actually decided to take the same bus back home. He used to stay in Shivaji Park at his grandmother's house. So, I got off at Shivaji Park. I live in Matunga. So, I walked from Shivaji Park to Matunga. But that bus journey in 1985, where the friendship started. Now, we are 40 years, 41 years from then. And our friendship is still strong," he remembered, adding, "We had all heard about Sachin and actually seen him play at the inter-school level. So, there was no doubt that here was somebody very, very special. So, there was no resentment or anything at all. We were hoping for the best, that he would develop very quickly, which he did. But it was very apparent that here is somebody who stands head and shoulders above others in terms of talent and potential."
There are some details about Tendulkar that perhaps explain him better than any statistic ever could. As a teenager, he was already making calls. Once ready to give up captaincy of a junior side unless a left-arm spinner he backed was picked. This wasn’t rebellion. It was clarity. And it came to Tendulkar as easily as a fish takes to water.
"He was captain of our Mumbai U-17 team. And I was the vice-captain. And I remember our manager was Mr. Tukaram Surve. And Sachin wanted a particular left-arm spinner to play in the team. But the manager was against it. And then Sachin told me to bring my cap as well. And we went and met the manager. And Sachin requested that a particular left-arm spinner be picked, adding that if he is not picked, he will not captain the team, nor will I serve as vice-captain. So, at that time, I realised how strong he was in his conviction, and in his reading for the game," he narrated.
His mind worked differently, too. While others wrestled with failure, Tendulkar seemed to disarm it. His greatest strength, Paranjpe insists, was almost invisible. The ability to forget the previous ball, often not talked about in cricket, can be a batter's best friend. In a sport obsessed with memory, he mastered amnesia. That was his superpower.
"I think Sachin's greatest strength was his ability to forget the previous ball. You know, as a batsman, it's very important that you stay in the moment and you forget the previous ball. It's easier said than done. But Sachin had this amazing ability to forget the previous ball and to focus on the ball at hand. I think that was his superpower," the former India batter described.
When most cricketers make the transition from domestic to international cricket, Tendulkar, at one point, possibly had more international exposure than domestic. Something that you rarely associate with cricketers. But that didn't let anyone in the Mumbai dressing room feel inferior. If anything, the bond deepened, which was rooted in something more personal than professional. He was shielded, but never suffocated. Seniors created space, not spotlight. They protected him from noise, not from challenge. There was no sense of 'losing' him for a greater cause, even as the world claimed him.
"What the senior players did was, they built the right atmosphere around him in the dressing room for that flower to bloom. I think the seniors at that time were very supportive and protective of him. They were all there for him all the time. He has a special humility about him. Which has not changed in the 41 years that I have known him. He is still the same old Sachin. He is there to help his friends out all the time, no matter what," the 54-year-old recalled.
Senior journalist Vijay Lokapalli, who has had the privilege of covering the length and breadth of Tendulkar's career, spoke about the other side of one of India's greatest batters ahead of his 53rd birthday. He recalled how deeply Tendulkar cared for children, narrating an evening that had stayed with him over the years.
Source: India Latest News, Breaking News Today, Top News Headlines | Times Now
